Yes One Nation, The Reef Has A Major 'Dying' Problem

Researchers have recorded a record coral die-off on the Great Barrier Reef.

Two-thirds of coral coverage has died in a major coral bleaching event

CANBERRA -- Just days after One Nation defied science and declared the Great Barrier Reef is "not dying at all" with Leader Pauline Hanson handling coral without a permit, science has recorded a record coral die-off on the world heritage site.

The scientist blames warming ocean temperatures for the bleaching and in the worst affected area, they report a 700 kilometres northern swath of reefs which has lost an average of 67 percent of its shallow-water corals in the past 8-9 months.

In highlighting the seriousness of his findings, the report's author Professor Terry Hughes has pre-empted criticism from climate sceptics, in particular One Nation Senator Malcolm Roberts.

The report did record minor damage in the southern two-thirds of the Reef and in the Reef's northern offshore corner, the later believed to be due to an upwelling of cooler waters from the Coral Sea.

It is in one of these improved southern tourist areas, near Great Keppel Island, that Hanson visited late last week in an effort to prove environmentalists were spreading misinformation about the state of the reef's health.